I've seen quite a few guys on here that used to be addicted to drugs, but were able to use exercise and bodybuilding to change their life. Sometimes I guess it can just be a different addiction that takes over like body building has for so many, and the positive reinforcement you get from increasing your lifts and seeing differences in the mirror can help you stay away from the other stuff. Good luck Brother!

unfortunately robb, and bigwilly is right baha, your brother has to want it from within himself more than anything else to stay clean. it's never a loss to introduce him to other things to fill or replace that void within him. bring him with you show him the iron, if he becomes interested or intrigued with it, teach him brother. talk with him find out if he has a passion in another hobby or sport you both could find interest in because something could just light a fire under the bros ass, I had a real close friend do this with me, he invited me to train with him, one day turned into 1 week, then a month before I knew it I had the fever and passion to be better today then yesterday, soo much so I finally decided to kick an opiate addiction that was almost at the point it was going to take my life bro, I had already lost most of my worldly possessions, family and kids included. bodybuilding gave me my life back and the motivation and discipline I've received from it I was also able to save my marriage and family. love, guide, share and be there for him baha is the most anyone can do for someone who is carrying these struggles, it might just be what fuels him to want to make or keep that change. best wishes and share any success's with us amigo....

For me being in and out of jail was enough after spending the best part of my 20's locked up I was well and truly done with it, or so I thought.
I turned 30 on my last sentence (40 now) and have never been back. However I've had about 5 minor relapse's since then, usually lasting just a few months before Ive had enough. Gets old real quick now fortunately.
This is something to bare in mind, even if he does start using again it doesn't mean it'll continue till he's eventually in jail. It maybe a little relapse, a few months blast, then like me just fuking sick of it and gets his shit together.

For me now I've been clean about 20 months and for the first time in my life genuinely feel like I'll stay clean. The only person who can do it is your brother, if he's really ready he'll stay clean, if not it'll eventually lead to him going back to drugs. It has to come from him, his own desire to do it. I know a few people who've stayed clean cos of family and other factors, but they eventually Fuk up, it has to come from within, doing it for family is just a short term fix.

Here's hoping though, this maybe his time to start living and enjoy a normal lifestyle.

well i wasn't going to comment as I don't like to divulge my past often but I can relate to your brother in a few similar ways, was I an addict? not to drugs but to the power and the lifestyle it came to selling them I was addicted to the money and power that came from that life style , I also know just how hard leaving that lifestyle is whether it be on my end of the spectrum or people like your brother considering I dealt with them earlier in that life style. addiction is no joke no matter what it is , let alone if you get sick and depressed when you try and come off it , or end up with an empty void left inside once you do clean up. a little more about myself, im 25 now and ive been on my own since 14 , ive had a lot of nice things and done a lot of nice shit also , but ive also lost it all when my time living that life came to the end , I also lost more while I was "living the dream" I buried my 2 friends , my mother, an aunt and my grandmother at 17 , but I was too busy to care because I was living it up like a rock star sure I went to the funerals , sure I was a little upset , but before then I was too busy, and after that it was business as usual. point being you don't think clearly when your addicted , and no matter what you see, or what happens in your surroundings you wont change unless you truly want to change. no body can make your mind up for you , you cant be helped unless your willing to help yourself. some come to their senses quicker then others, some learn the hard way. jail sucked, state prison suck more , federal prison and the diesel tour sucked the most , that didn't change my mind tho. my son did . the thought of him growing up in a broken home and slowly getting sucked into a similar fate , killed me bro. it helped me wake up and realize if I didn't wake up I was just helping the cycle continue. realizing all the people I lost that ill never get back because I was too busy trying to get money wtf all the time I wasted and damage I had done to myself and others smh now those are the demons I live with now every day. from 16 to 23 I was either locked up or was doing time on paper , but after awhile it catches up to you when your looking at armed career criminal in the feds , let alone all the probation with that time over your head that you''ll have to run consecutive as the next fuck up , and you have a child who looks up to you now , a helpless life and its your job to teach him right from wrong if that doesn't make you want to change there are deep problems and your judgment is cloudy. all you can do baha is let him know your there for him and you truly want to help him change but only if he wants to help himself because you don't want to see him drag others in your family with him due to their worry for him, or their depression because he isn't around when he should be, and you can ask him how he thinks he would feel if family on the outside started to pass away and there wasn't a damn thing he could do because his repeat decisions put him back in the cage. I hope he changes his ways and finds reasons to help himself and stay clean and be legit, not just for himself , but for his family members. you only get one chance at life then its gone, one chance at first impressions , and you never can take back the wrong things you've said, or the pain you've caused, or get back the time you've wasted. I cant take back anything ive done or lost but it has made me the man I am today, all I can do is try and help others going down the same road.

I've been in recovery going on 8 years now. Rhino is 100% right. An addict will not quit until they are ready. All you can do in be there to support them when they need it and lead by example. I would HIGHLY recommend AGAINST introducing him to AAS or even letting him know you're into it. It's more than he needs right now and will more than likely only start a quick (or long) spiral back down the wrong path. Training and lifting weights was honestly my stepping stone into living a sober and productive life. I also could not have done it without the support of my family and friends. I focused my days around training. And meetings. He should be around people that know what he's going through and are striving to be better. A 12 step program isn't for everyone but for me it gave me all the tools I needed to start a new life. Put an emphasis on keeping him away from the people, places, and things that led him to where he was before. I went through multiple rehabs and ended up doing some time before I got it right. Hopefully his time was exactly what he needed to realize thats not the life he wants to lead for himself. Be empathetic and supportive. PM me if your bro needs a resource for step work or just an open ear to relate to.

this ,may sound kind of f'd up but introduce him to aas i say to do this bc of how the addicts mind works "we" always need to take something a little extra in order to just feel right so give him some gear "safely" if you do this right he can kinda trade it off for the other garbage that will kill him or put him back in jail. you notice i said we before? yea ive been through this ad it has worked for me, its been years an years since i last did a drug. not saying you have to or should do this its just a suggestion but you also dont want to be too late bc once that old habit gets him again thats it, right now he has time clean so i hope this helps

Just wanted to say hope everything worksout baha don't have advice from directl experience but a lot of family members been down that road some of then gone just my uncle still around the way he speaks him and rhino sound alike I mean that In a good way agreeing with the advice he gave

Bro the only way to treat an is with another addiction find something that he loves to do and support him tell him he's good u have to build him from the ground up cuz addicts only go back to those drugs are addictions cuz that's where they find comfort so you must have patients and help him find something he's good and get him addicted to that whatever it may be take it day by day man that shit is tough but that's how I seem addicts just my opinion bro good luck

Bro I say this with nothing but love in my heart for you and your family, but I was an addict for almost 15 years, and watching the birth of 3 of my children couldn't even get me to stop. The only way an addict will quit is when THEY ARE READY!!! Nobody or nothing can change them bro. It sucks. I used to look at pics of my kids and cry at the same time I was crushing up pills cuz I couldn't stop. Going to prison was what made me stop. And that's where I found BB, and started getting high from that. Realizing I didn't need drugs to make the world a better place. But sometimes it's harder for others to understand that. You brother will definitely be in my prayers bro.